Sunday, November 21, 2010

After several clumsy Sling-X-Bows, I wanted a compact plinking toy. A pistol!

Regarding the design, I always liked the Ruger MK2 .22 pistol. So I borrowed the grip/trigger look for my rubber based "competitor".

In order to have some amount of power, I turned the lock around (Stu's idea, in fact) and set for 45 cm (18") draw length (= total length of the weapon).

The trigger is really easy, just a lever that keeps the locks in place and releases them once the trigger is pulled. It is held back with a rubber band, this time it is not visible (under the lock plate).

The lock dowels are drilled off center, so that they are adjustable for different ammo size. Especially the small 8mm balls need very tight settings.

Monday, November 15, 2010

Bill Hays is exciting the slingshot community with his totally new designs. He makes frames that look like nothing else, but work just perfect and are amongst the most comfortable slingshots tested in The Slingshot Channel so far.

Three different frames are shown, one even has a 16 round steel ball magazine.

Sunday, November 14, 2010

The slingbow is a very popular weapon as it is compact, lightweight, easy to make and can shoot hunting arrows. But it competes with small bows, such as the "Liberty I" by Howard Winthers from www.libertyarchery.com.

This video presents the "Liberty I" bow and compares it to the "Diamond Razor Edge" compound bow and the homemade slingbow (see the How-To on The Slingshot Channel).

The results are quite impressive, the small Liberty I shoots a 400 gr arrow at more than 310 km/h. It outperforms the larger Razor Edge and of course also the slingbow (made with materials for under 10 dollars).

Slow Motion scenes recorded at 1200 frames per second show the behaviour of the bow when shot, it stays amazingly calm.

Sunday, November 7, 2010

Have made two entirely different "Phoenix" models today. Phew! That was a lot of dirty work.

First one is a laminate of four 3mm Cocobolo veneer and three 3mm copper plates. A heavy, nice shooter that needs some more finishing - but for today it is enough.

The second one is probably the most beautiful Phoenix I ever made. 9mm birch multiplex core, then Thuja scales. The Thuja is too brittle for a sleek slingshot, but laminated to the multiplex it is rock solid. I just love this slingshot am I am totally proud.